Gemsicuted

Written by Julian Robov


Forty One


The trip by July to Indonesia turned out to be good. Now she needed a big one, a
42carat piece, a birthday gift not for the Suharto family, but another member. It was a common trend among the rich in Indonesia. They competed with each other to outdo other families. Now, she was back in Bangkok again for the precious gem.
“I got your fax,” July said. “The money is in your account, as you requested. This is a copy of the transfer.”
“I already received the statement from the bank. Thanks, anyway,” Rubyhall answered.
“That fast?” July echoed her surprise.
“Nothing is impossible today, when you keep that cordial relationship,” Rubyhall added. “When I take care of them, they take care of me. That’s all. Let me show you the box, and see for yourself.”
Rubyhall walked to his safe deposit vault, and removed two large stone boxes. One he kept under the drawer, he opened for her to view.
“Wow! Isn’t that beautiful?” July stood agape. Rubyhall moved swiftly and picked another black box.
“Look, this is yours,” he said. “42carat piece! Follow the ritual. Go and look under all the lights available in this room, and see whether it will look the same way in your country. For ruby it is extremely important to have a pleasant light. So, go and check. If the ruby looks red in that fluorescent light, the stone has already passed the test.”
“I think it will look okay,” July said. “All of your stones will pass the light test, anyway.” Rubyhall was flattered.
In fact, July was telling the truth. He had already done several tests before by his experienced eyes and the spectrophotometer, the most advanced color measurement device used by the color experts. The insatiable interests in color theory took him beyond the level of knowing about the causes of color in a ruby, because he knew this subject was the least understood by the majority. Color had the power to manipulate emotions and a colorless world was unthinkable.
“Why do you say that?” Rubyhall became curious, even though he knew the answer.
“Because they are all good. Simple! Period.” July smiled.
He could only imagine what the miners would have thought if they heard the statement. The 42carat ruby, oval shaped, was cut from a 142carat rough from Mogok, Burma. In order to improve its color, clarity, and brilliance, he had to suffer a huge weight loss just to get the cut ruby in shape. No one understood the significance of the pain he took to make it look beautiful and desirable. Now the ruby was holding the power and glory to mystify and enhance the custodians for the rest of their lives.
“Is the stone okay for you? Are you convinced?” Rubyhall asked once again.
“Yep,” she continued. “I don’t want to carry the stone back to my condo. Keep it in your safe. I’ll collect it when I leave Bangkok.”
“No problem. What are your plans for today?” Rubyhall knew she had some surprises under her sleeve.
“I think I’ll give Rubin the surprise of his life,” she said smilingly. “He must be staying in the same room, right? I hope he will be free for the evening.”
“I think so,” recalled Rubyhall. “Enjoy your day. Just give me a call in advance before you come to pick up the ruby. I’ll have the details ready.”
“Thank you, Mr Rubyhall!”
July could hardly explain her joy after seeing the 42carat ruby. She hailed a taxi from Surawong Road to the Oriental hotel. The taxi moved a few meters and then halted.

Surawong was jam packed with cars, tuk tuks, and buses. There was no way the taxi could move. Neither the taxi driver nor she could do anything. She began pondering whether to walk or just sit in the taxi. She glanced at her watch. Walking seemed the best alternative, and that’s precisely what she did. The meter read thirtyfive baht. She gave him a fifty baht bill and decided to walk the street.

While walking on the footpath, her thought was glued to the 42carat ruby, and the profit she would be making from the deal. If she could sell one piece a month that was enough to keep her comfortable. With no excessive overheads, this arrangement with Rubyhall became a perfect source for putting the profit back into the business without bothering her parents. Indonesia was her perfect market, because of the high concentration of ethnic Chinese businessmen and their wealth. And the ruling elite used their connections to keep at bay accusations from the local Indonesians, regarding their accumulation of profit through various government projects and foundations they created to manipulate the situation using a very few friends to run their business interests. Rubies were one such safe haven. The ruling elite competed against each other for status, especially their wives and children. Ruby became a perfect candidate to parade their wealth. Creating more ruby collectors became July’s goal after the success in persuading one of the richest Chinese business tycoon’s wives. She was a close friend of Suharto’s family. And there were many to be sold, if she did it the right way. With Rubyhall’s help, she knew she could achieve her goals in a matter of time. The money was great.

The traffic was the same. Not a single vehicle was moving. There were red stoplights at each junction, and she had no idea what was going on. She crossed New Road, knowing it was just another few minutes walk to the Oriental. School kids thronged the small back streets from the Assumption School, not too far away from the Oriental hotel. It was a sight she could have hardly missed. She loved children. July saw their innocent smiles, street fights, arguments, loud laughter for no reasons, and the sight preoccupied her memories back to her school days in Singapore. Their white and blue uniform with black handbags was visible at all stoplight junctions of New Road. They were arriving from different back streets with their parents and housemaids to cross the street. She forgot about the rubies and Indonesian connections for those few minutes to watch the kids from a sidewalk. It was irresistible. Even the tourists coming out of the Oriental lane were doing exactly the same. They laughed at each other. The traffic policemen looked helpless at the dead-end situation and he too herded the children to the opposite lane to make sure no motorcycle taxis over ran them knowing their notoriety for speed and carelessness.